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Lions at Vikings (-3):

Adrian Peterson sat out the second half last week with his nagging injuries but insists he wants to play Sunday. He says “we definitely want to close it out the right way” since it’s the final game both for the Metrodome and for Leslie Frazier’s head coaching career.

Pick: Vikings by 5

(Pioneer Press: Sherri LaRose-Chiglo)

Packers at Bears (-3½):

The day after Christmas will be pivotal for Green Bay quarterback Aaron Rodgers and his broken collarbone. Team officials are deciding whether to announce their QB will sit out the season finale, or to tease their fans a few more days before ruling him out on Sunday.

Pick: Bears by 7

(AP Photo/Matt Ludtke, File)

Chiefs at Chargers (-9½):

Chargers coach Mike McCoy defended his team after its plodding win over Oakland on Sunday, saying “there is no such thing as a bad win.” He later backed off that claim when someone reminded him about the 2008 presidential election.

Pick: Chargers by 11

(AP Photo/Denis Poroy)

Eagles at Cowboys (+7):

The Las Vegas line on the NFC East title game shifted 10 points Monday after news of Tony Romo’s back injury surfaced. Vegas insiders said they usually only see rapid movement like that when a Kardashian meets a pro athlete.

Pick: Eagles by 10

(AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

Jets at Dolphins (-6½):

Miami is somehow in line for a wild card playoff berth despite its 19-0 shutout loss to Buffalo on Sunday. Analysts agreed the Bills’ brutal beating of Ryan Tannehill and Co. is the Dolphins’ biggest embarrassment since they had to put Bryant McKinnie in the starting lineup.

Pick: Dolphins by 4

(AP Photo/Bill Wippert)

Jaguars at Colts (-11½):

The Colts’ suddenly-improved offense shined Sunday as they rolled past Kansas City, a potential playoff foe. Indianapolis has been firing on all cylinders since coaches came to the realization that Trent Richardson can’t carry Donald Brown’s jockstrap.

Pick: Colts by 10

(AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

49ers at Cardinals (+1½):

Arizona, despite its 10-5 record, still needs a Tampa Bay win in New Orleans to make the playoffs. In other words, you have as much chance of seeing them in January as those Christmas gifts you had shipped on UPS.

Pick: Cardinals by 3

(AP Photo/Elaine Thompson)

Bills at Patriots (-9):

New England coach Bill Belichick says new NFL rules limiting offseason practice time are leading to more player injuries. Statistics do show that Belichick’s players are vulnerable to getting hurt because they’re less prepared ... and because everybody hates their coach.

Pick: Patriots by 13

(Rob Carr/Getty Images)

Buccaneers at Saints (-12½):

Drew Brees and Co. likely blew their chance for the NFC South title by folding the past two weeks at Carolina and St. Louis. It was a huge shock to Saints fans to learn their team sucks on the road both indoors and outdoors.

Pick: Saints by 21

(AP Photo/Bob Leverone)

Texans at Titans (-7):

Houston end J.J. Watt says he’s considering plastic surgery on his oft-mangled nose after the season. The injury to the 2012 Defensive Player of the Year is surprising because it’s mostly been the Texans’ asses that have been kicked this season.

Pick: Titans by 3

(AP Photo/David J. Phillip, File)

Broncos at Raiders (+12½):

Terrelle Pryor’s agent ripped the Raiders over what he says is mistreatment of his client. Jerome Stanley complained that the Raiders have put the young quarterback in a position to fail, or as it’s commonly known, Oakland.

Pick: Broncos by 3

(Peter Aiken/Getty Images)

Rams at Seahawks (-10½):

Seattle and Russell Wilson still need one more victory to clinch home-field advantage throughout the NFC playoffs. You can ask Wilson all about the big game by using his new State Farm app, which you can download at IHaveNoLifeWhatsoever.com.

Pick: Seahawks by 4

(AP Photo/Stephen Brashear)

Redskins at Giants (-3½):

The sad sack Giants rallied to eliminate Detroit from playoff contention with their overtime victory last Sunday. Their effort made history, as it gave Lions fans their 1 millionth reason to leave the Motor City and never return.

Pick: Giants by 8

(AP Photo/Paul Sancya)

Panthers at Falcons (+6½):

Cam Newton and his teammates did not celebrate their clinching of a playoff berth last week because “the work is not done.” They still will have to step over the Falcons after last year’s No. 1 seed lays down for the 12th time.

Pick: Panthers by 10

(AP Photo/Bob Leverone)

Ravens at Bengals (-6):

Baltimore coach John Harbaugh blamed their blowout loss to New England on Sunday on their short work week after their Monday night game. It shows that the Ravens can, if nothing else, still make excuses at a Super Bowl level.

Pick: Bengals by 7

(AP Photo/Nick Wass)

Browns at Steelers (-7):

Mike Tomlin’s Steelers barely held on to win Sunday after he insisted on scoring a touchdown instead of running out the clock and kicking a game-winning field goal. The blunder gave the Packers a last-second shot at victory and is only the latest indication that Tomlin might be a moron.

The Loop NFL Picks: Week 17

Every week, Kevin Cusick makes his picks against the Las Vegas point spread, the way God intended ...
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MAKE YOUR OWN PICKS: Choose your winners of this week's games along with six experts from Digital First Media.